The Siemens Foundation holds a Mathematics，Science and Technology Competition for high school students every year．The Foundation created the competition to improve student. Performance in mathematics and science．The contest is open to any student who is an American citizen or permitted to live in the United States The Siemens Foundation joined the College Board and six universities to create the competition．More than 1，600 students took part in the contest last year．

    Experts from the universities judge competitions in six parts of the country．Individual and team winners from those events then compete nationally．They demonstrate their projects to university professors and scientists．A winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics，Joseph Taylor,led the judging group for the latest contest．

    The results from that judging group produced a first in the history of the competition It was the first time in which girls won both the individual and the team prizes．Forty-eight percent of those who entered the latest contest were young women.

    The individual winner was Isha Jain of Bethlehem，Pennsylvania．She received 100，000 dollars toward her college education for her studies of bone growth in zebra fish．The Siemens judges said she was the first to discover that bone grows in many short periods of time．They also said her work was equal to that of a student who had completed four years of college．

    The top team winners were two seventeen year olds from Plainview，New York．Janelle Schloss berger and Amanda Harin off shared a prize of 100，000 dollars for their college educations．The young women studied bacteria(细菌)responsible for the disease tuberculosis(肺结核，略作TB)．They created substances that kill tuberculosis by attacking a protein．The Siemens

 Foundation says their discovery could lead to a new treatment for drug resistant TB．

41．The Siemens Foundation holds the science competitions for American hi．gh school students in  order to           ．

    A．encourage them to complete their schoolwork

    B．improve their knowledge of science

    C．earn enough money for college

    D．show them the importance of science

42．Isha Jain of Bethlehem won her prize because         ．

    A．she had finished her college study

    B．she had studied the disease tuberculosis

    C．she had worked equally with boys

    D．she had obtained a result about bone growth

43．The competitors show their talent by           ．

    A．presenting their projects to the judging group

    B．taking part in an examination

    C．handing in the whole of their projects

    D．designing a project on the spot

44．From this passage we learn that           ．

    A．only American citizens take part in the competition

    B．fewer girls used to take part in the competition

    C．more than half girls took part in the recent competition

    D．all winners’ prizes are for their college educations

45．What is a good title for the passage?

    A．Preparations for High School Students Before College

    B．A Chance to Demonstrate Their Knowledge of Science

    C．Distinguished Meeting of American High School Students

    D．Young Women’s Great Contributions to Science

The ability to memorize things seems to be a vanishing （消失的） technique．So what can we do to bring out brain cells back into action? A newly published book on memory, Moomvalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, by American journalist Joshua Foer, makes a telling point, one that is an analysis of the importance of memorising events and stories in human history; the decline of its role in modem life; and the techniques that we need to adopt to restore the art of remembering．

As For points out, we no longer need to remember telephone numbers．Our mobile phones do that for us．We don't recall addresses either．We send emails from computers that store electronic addresses．Nor do we bother to remember multiplication tables （乘法表） ．Pocket calculators do the job of multiplying quite nicely．Museums, photographs, the digital media and books also act as storehouses for memories that once we had to keep in mind．

As a result, we no longer remember long poems or folk stories by heart, feats （技艺） of memory that were once the cornerstones of most people's lives．Indeed, society has changed so much that we no longer know what techniques we should employ to remember such lengthy works．We are, quite simply, forgetting how to remember．

And let's face it, there is nothing sadder than someone who has lost their mobile phone and who finds they cannot even phone home or call their parents or partners because they cannot remember a single telephone number．That is a sad example of loss of personal independence．So, yes, there is a need for us to he able to remember certain things in life．

Therefore, Foer's book outlines the methods that need to be mastered in order to promote our memories and regain the ability to recall long strings of names, numbers or faces．In the process, he adds, we will become more aware of the world about us．

The trick, Foer says, is to adopt a process known as " elaborative encoding", which involves transforming information, such as a shopping list, into a series of "absorbing visual images"．If you want to remember a list of household objects—potatoes, cottage cheese, sugar and other items, then visualise them in an unforgettable manner, he says．Start by creating an image of a large jar of potatoes standing in the garden．Next to it, imagine a giant tub of cottage cheese—the size of an outdoor pool—and then picture Lady Gaga swimming in it．And so on．Each image should be as fantastic and memorable as possible．

Using methods like this, it becomes possible to achieve great feats of memory quite easily, Foer says．It certainly seems to have worked for him: he won the annual US Memory Championships after learning how to memorize 120 random digits in five minutes; the first and last names of 156 strangers in 15 minutes; and a deck of cards in under two minutes．"What I had really trained my brain to do, as much as to memorise, was to be more mindful and to pay attention to the world around," he says．

These techniques employed by Foer to master his memory were developed by Ed Cooke—a British writer and a world memory championship grandmaster．He acted as Foer's trainer during preparations for the book and helped him achieve his championship performances．" Memory techniques do just one thing: they make information more meaningful to the mind, making the things we try to learn unforgettably bright and amusing," said Cooke．

1.Which of the following is conveyed in this article?

2.According to Joshua Foer, people no longer memorize information today because________．

3.One method of memorizing things mentioned in the passage is to ________．

4.The underlined word "visualise" in the last paragraph most probably means "_______"．

5.This passage can be sorted as ________．

The ability to memorize things seems to be a vanishing （消失的） technique．So what can we do to bring out brain cells back into action? A newly published book on memory, Moomvalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, by American journalist Joshua Foer, makes a telling point, one that is an analysis of the importance of memorising events and stories in human history; the decline of its role in modem life; and the techniques that we need to adopt to restore the art of remembering．

As Foer points out, we no longer need to remember telephone numbers．Our mobile phones do that for us．We don't recall addresses either．We send emails from computers that store electronic addresses．Nor do we bother to remember multiplication tables （乘法表） ．Pocket calculators do the job of multiplying quite nicely．Museums, photographs, the digital media and books also act as storehouses for memories that once we had to keep in mind．

As a result, we no longer remember long poems or folk stories by heart, feats （技艺） of memory that were once the cornerstones of most people's lives．Indeed, society has changed so much that we no longer know what techniques we should employ to remember such lengthy works．We are, quite simply, forgetting how to remember．

And let's face it, there is nothing sadder than someone who has lost their mobile phone and who finds they cannot even phone home or call their parents or partners because they cannot remember a single telephone number．That is a sad example of loss of personal independence．So, yes, there is a need for us to he able to remember certain things in life．

Therefore, Foer's book outlines the methods that need to be mastered in order to promote our memories and regain the ability to recall long strings of names, numbers or faces．In the process, he adds, we will become more aware of the world about us．

The trick, Foer says, is to adopt a process known as " elaborative encoding", which involves transforming information, such as a shopping list, into a series of "absorbing visual images"．If you want to remember a list of household objects—potatoes, cottage cheese, sugar and other items, then visualise them in an unforgettable manner, he says．Start by creating an image of a large jar of potatoes standing in the garden．Next to it, imagine a giant tub of cottage cheese—the size of an outdoor pool—and then picture Lady Gaga swimming in it．And so on．Each image should be as fantastic and memorable as possible．

Using methods like this, it becomes possible to achieve great feats of memory quite easily, Foer says．It certainly seems to have worked for him: he won the annual US Memory Championships after learning how to memorize 120 random digits in five minutes; the first and last names of 156 strangers in 15 minutes; and a deck of cards in under two minutes．"What I had really trained my brain to do, as much as to memorise, was to be more mindful and to pay attention to the world around," he says．

These techniques employed by Foer to master his memory were developed by Ed Cooke—a British writer and a world memory championship grandmaster．He acted as Foer's trainer during preparations for the book and helped him achieve his championship performances．" Memory techniques do just one thing: they make information more meaningful to the mind, making the things we try to learn unforgettably bright and amusing," said Cooke．

51．Which of the following is conveyed in this article?

       A．People become more independent with modern equipment．

       B．The memory's role in life is declining in modem society．

       C．Memory techniques can make information less meaningful．

       D．Ed Cooke is the first one who benefited from Foer's techniques．

52．According to Joshua Foer, people no longer memorize information today because________．

       A．museums can do everything for them．

       B．they no longer have the ability to memorize things．

       C．they have things that can act as storehouses for memories．

       D．it is not necessary to memorize anything in modem life．

53．One method of memorizing things mentioned in the passage is to ________．

       A．link things to famous pop stars

       B．find the connection between different things

       C．form vivid, unforgettable images of certain things

       D．use advanced digital imaging technology to help

54．The underlined word "visualise" in the last paragraph most probably means "_______"．

       A．imagine           B．undertake            C.remark           D．indicate

55．This passage can be sorted as ________．

       A．a news report                               B．an advertisement         

       C．a scientific discovery                        D．a book review

The single, decisive factor(因素) that made it possible for mankind to settle in lasting communities(社区，聚居地) was agriculture. After farming was developed in the Middle East in about 6500 BC, people living in family units did not have to be on the move continually searching for food or hunting their animals. Once people could control the production of food and be assured of a reliable supply of it, their lives changed completely.

Farming was a revolutionary discovery. It not only made settlements possible and later the building of cities but it also made available a reliable food supply. With more food available, more people could be fed. Population therefore increased. The growing number of people available for more kinds of work led to the development of new social formations. With more and more food, a community could support a variety of workers who were not farmers.

Farming in the world over has always relied upon a dependable water supply. For the earliest societies this meant rivers and streams or regular rainfall. The first great civilizations grew up along rivers. Later communities were able to develop by taking advantage of the rainy seasons.

    All of the ancient civilizations probably developed in much the same way, in spite of a few differences. As villages grew, the production of more numerous goods became possible. Cloth could be woven from wool. Houses made of wood, brick, and stone could be put up.

    The science of mathematics was an early outgrowth of agriculture. People studied the movements of the moon, the sun, and the planets to work out seasons. In so doing they created the first calendars(日历). With a calendar it was possible to find out the arrival of each growing season. Measurement of land areas was necessary if field was to be divided accurately. Measurements of amounts, for example, of seeds or grains was also a factor in farming and housekeeping. Later came measures of value as money exchange became common.

    All of the major ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus Valley, and China appeared in the 4^th millennium BC. Historians still argue over which one came into being first. It may well have been the Middle East. This place reaches out from the Nile River in Egypt northward along the coast of former Palestine, then eastward into Asia to include Mesopotamia. In this area people settled along the riverbanks and practiced field agriculture. This kind of farming depended on the reproduction of seed, normally from grain crops.

1. The final result of the development of agriculture was that_________ . 

  A. the population increased slowly

  B. a constant supply of food was certain

  C. a new social formation came into being

  D. a variety of jobs were open to people

2. Which of the following is true according to the writer?

  A. Mathematics helped create the agricultural society.

  B. Societies in the past in different parts of the world grew in similar ways.

  C. Modern cities developed out of originally wealthier villages.

  D. Cloth-making marked an important period in agricultural development.

3. The development of mathematics ________ .

  A. enabled people to arrange their agricultural activities better

  B. got the society out of the agricultural age

  C. helped create early agricultural civilization around the world

  D. made possible the exchange of agricultural goods

4. It can be safely concluded that _______ .

  A. the development of mathematics played a decisive role in the birth of modern cities

  B. the earliest civilization first came into being in the Middle East

  C. all ancient civilizations around the world developed in exactly the same way

  D. the development of agriculture played a very important role in human history

5. The text is mainly about _________ .

  A. the importance of agriculture

  B. the relationship between agriculture and mankind

  C. the origin of agriculture

  D. the ancient civilization